Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Patty's Piecing Makeover review and Giveaway

I want to tell you about Patty. Last year in Houston I went along to one of the 'event' things. You know, everyone is invited and you get a free drink and stand around awkwardly cause you don't actually know anyone. There is some air-kissing (and arse kissing) and smiling politely while trying to sneakily read people's name tags. I was busy doing just that when Patty said Hi, and the rest is history. She is a bubbly, fun little-bit-loopy woman and all that time ago when she asked if I would like to see her book I said yes.

So, time passes as it does and eventually I get a message from Patty saying the book is done and would I like to see it ? I can't even remember what the book is about so I give an enthusiastic YES and hope it is not a knitting book.Ok ! The thing is, this book was written for me. I mean it. I know that I sometimes make quilts but I really do just wing it every time and there is a lot of fudging and swearing and unpicking. There are often tantrums and blocks getting tossed in the bin from across the room.There is so much fantastic information in this book - stuff that I didn't even know that I didn't know - like the magical little sewey up thing for mitred binding - Seriously !!!

Not to mention the crazy idea of checking that your 1/4 inch is in fact a 1/4 inch The book is basically a manual that shows you how things go wrong and what to do to fix them. The day it arrived I jumped into the ironing Vs pressing section (cause I suck at both) and ended up reading about seam setting, open or closed seams and whether or not to use steam.The book takes you through a whole bunch of different quilt blocks, each with a problem, diagnosis and solution. With sections like "Is my wonky strip still useable?" this book really was made for me.if you would like a bit more of a look inside Patty's book you can visit the folks below

Patty has kindly offered to give away a copy of the book here on the blog so I want to know what your quilting problem is ? do you pucker? are you leaning to one side? are your middle bits all congested?Leave a comment and I will draw a winner by the end of the week.

I want this book, Jod - no, dammit, I NEED this book. No matter how carefully I cut and stitch, everything ends up just a little bit wrong. I worry over every seam. My unpicker gets such a workout - it's fitter than I am. As for piecing - forget it. Too imperfect, too nervewracking.

Measure twice cut once and still you need to trim your block! I thought all my Christmases had come at once with a 1/4 inch foot for my Janome. Then I found out about a scant quarter inch seam. OMG. Plus, sadly my needle won't move to the right just to the left so there is not much room to set up the 1/4 inch. Still I just plough on and fudge things. Sounds like a great book, lucky you for finding Patty

My quilting problem? More quilty projects than I have time in my day!! I also have trouble with matching "points" and some funny differential feeding issues (the top piece is often shorter than the bottom piece if I haven't pinned). Patty's book sounds excellent - great for a self-taught quilter like me!

I think the quilty police would have a long list of what I need to know to make a perfect quilt. To name a few areas it would be matching points (probably why I like the disappearing nine patch it is very forgiving) and the 1/4" seam. I am self taught so this book would be a huge asset and I am sure I would find more areas I need to improve in. As my quilts so far have been for family and friends I just tell them that is the way it is meant to be! Lets face it I'm not going to enter in competitions or win them either.

I have a friend who makes some pretty elaborate pieced quilts. And, she is meticulous when matching seams. I understand why it's important, but I dread the fussiness of it. Because of this, I haven't really made anything where matching of seams is critical... which feels a bit lazy. So, I'd have to say my problem is not knowing how to get my seams to match!

You know those star points where the bulk of 8 fabrics from HSTs has to magically converge and not look like a pig's breakfast? The only time I ever fluke them right is when (Murphy's Law) it doesn't matter as the pattern says to applique something over the intersection!

The quilty police would lock me up, throw away the key & petition for the death penalty. Never mind, I embrace the wonky but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to learn how to improve. I think my problems start with my cutting, include my sewing, involve the pressing & maybe end with my quilting. You get the picture, all enthusiasm,, not much style!

an issue with something called "not enough sewing hours in a day", does she have a solution for that!?!? LOL, reality is that this is probably just a really good resource for a load of issues I come across on any given Quilt!!!

My quilt problem is that my blocks never measure as large as they should. I could deal with them being too large but mine always seem to be a tad too small. Sometimes I can fudge the seams but most of the time I just have to start over.

I don't match. I measure and cut meticulously and I sew my patches together and yes I measure the seam allowance - but the seams are just all over the place. Can I get 4 frigging lines to meet at a single point? I cannot. These seams just want to party.

When sewing two pieces together that have seams in them that need matching (like when sewing rows of blocks together), it doesn't matter how much I pin, I always sew at least one of the seams of the bottom fabric facing the wrong way. And as much as I'd love to leave it like that, I can't as it doesn't sit properly. Frustrates me every time and makes me question my pinning.

I struggle to sew exactly straight seams and tend to veer right at the end so the corners pucker. I'm getting better but just when I think I'm on, I'll get rushed or lazy and get off again. I need help!

I just simply can't make my points pointy... instead they are blunted or missing the pointy bit... I'd like to get the point, instead of missing it! (In more ways than one!) Thanks for the opportunity to improve on this skill... lovely & practical giveaway!

I find myself grinding my teeth over making a "scant" quarter inch so everything works out right. And then there's that crazy making thing about that angley thing you do to join the binding when they meet--Yikes! BTW, I wandered around your site--and am totally smitten with your patterns. They are totally wacky--just my style :) (Now if I just had a grandchild. . . )

I find myself grinding my teeth over making a "scant" quarter inch so everything works out right. And then there's that crazy making thing about that angley thing you do to join the binding when they meet--Yikes! BTW, I wandered around your site--and am totally smitten with your patterns. They are totally wacky--just my style :) (Now if I just had a grandchild. . . )

getting my 1/4 to be consistant.... i make blocks for a quilt, measure them and find that they all seem to be slightly different.... then seams get stretched, tears flow and projects sometimes never get finished :(

We all can get a pucker or a warped seam sometimes. Cutting strips accurately and not stretching the fabrics helps. I recently starting using Best Press to add sizing to my fabrics before I cut them. It's helping. Keeping lots of sharp rotary blades or getting a fabric cutter also helps a lot. :)